-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- It was Muhammad Ali who warned his opponents he would `` float like a butterfly and sting like a bee '' .

Now , perhaps Borussia Dortmund can claim similar after crushing Real Madrid 4-1 in the first leg of its Champions League semifinal Wednesday .

Decked out in black and yellow , it swarmed around Real from the start with a buzz and infectious enthusiasm to be marveled at -- but it was left to one man to administer the fatal sting .

Robert Lewandowski , the Poland striker , was already one of the most feared forwards in European football before his took the field .

He left with his reputation enhanced four-fold , his asking price at an all-time high and his team within touching distance of next month 's Champions League final .

His four goals lit up an extraordinary encounter in which Dortmund went from young pretenders to serious contenders .

Barring the prospect of miracles at Camp Nou and the Bernabeu next week , Dortmund will contest the first ever all-German Champions League final against Bayern Munich at Wembley on May 25 .

`` It was an unbelievable , '' Dortmund boss Jurgen Klopp told Sky Sports .

`` It was a great game by my team . It was so difficult today because they are so strong and fast and they are so brilliant on the counterattack .

`` The first 25 minutes were great and then we lost a bit of our game . Not so much but enough to let them come up .

`` They got -LRB- level -RRB- and at the break we told the players : ` Maybe you think there was a wrong decision by the referee but in the last game we had a wrong decision from the referee and we had the winner . Go back to the strong first 25 minutes ' . ''

CNN Football Club : What would you ask Brad Friedel ?

Forget that Real , the nine-time winners and richest club in the world , was expected to qualify for the final .

Forget that Real , boasting the mercurial talent of Cristiano Ronaldo , failed to produce their normal level of performance .

Instead , focus on one of the most exciting and vibrant sides to have emerged in European competition for many a year .

The fresh faced innocence , the youthful zest , the unbounded energy , all these traits have helped shape a Dortmund side , which is quickly winning the hearts of football fans across the globe .

German football is enjoying a stellar spell in the spotlight with fan ownership , cheap tickets , high attendances and huge television audiences making the Bundesliga one of the most popular leagues in the world .

If Bayern 's 4-0 win over Barcelona on Tuesday night was supposedly the beginning of a power shift from Spain to Germany , then Dortmund 's dominance confirmed it .

Everywhere you looked on the field , Dortmund was in control . Lewandowski led the line , a lone warrior refusing to be tamed by a Real defense appearing more and more desperate as the night progressed .

The prodigiously talented Ilkay Gundogan , who shielded his defense with an authority and maturity way beyond his 22 years , ran the midfield .

Mario Goetze , playing just over 24 hours since his $ 48 million move to Bayern had been confirmed , showed just why incoming manager Pep Guardiola was so keen to lure the gifted playmaker to the Allianz Arena .

Alongside the fleet footed Marco Reus , the pair tore into a Real side which looked anemic inside the red hot atmosphere of the Westfalenstadion .

Real would have expected Dortmund to start at breakneck speed , but even it was taken aback by the pace , power and ferocity of the German side .

Just seven minutes had elapsed when the wonderfully talented Reus danced his way through the Real defense , before unleashing a rasping effort which was parried away by Diego Lopez .

That was a warning of what was to follow and less than 60 seconds later the home side forged ahead when Goetze produced a sublime cross from the left for Lewandowski to poke home .

The buzz and energy with which Dortmund played appeared to overwhelm the Spanish champion , which was swept away with consummate ease .

But while Dortmund dominated , it was unable to add to its advantage and was made to pay as Real struck back with just two minutes of the half remaining .

With the home players still appealing for a penalty for what they considered to be a foul on Reus , the visiting team took advantage in devastating fashion .

A long ball was misjudged by Mats Hummels and Gonzalo Higuain ran clear to square for Cristiano Ronaldo to roll the ball home .

Ronaldo 's strike , his sixth in six consecutive Champions League games , appeared to have left Dortmund in a daze .

But whatever Klopp said to his side at the break worked a treat as they produced one of the most enthralling second half displays in recent times .

It was Lewandowski who led the charge , firing home his second within five minutes of the restart after taking Reus ' deflected effort in his path .

His third followed soon after , and when it came , it was worth waiting for .

Marcel Schmelzer 's cross-cum-shot found the forward inside the penalty area and the striker produced an exquisite turn before sending an unstoppable effort into the roof of the net .

Dortmund were rampant and the hugely impressive Gundogan almost added a fourth when his fierce effort was brilliantly tipped away by Lopez in the Real goal .

That fourth goal was not far away , however , and when Xavi Alonso fouled Reus inside the penalty area , Lewandowski stood up to power home from 12-yards .

Not since the legendary Hungarian striker Ferenc Puskas in 1960 had anybody scored four times in a European Cup semfinal or final .

That tally could have been greater but Lopez produced another stunning save to push the Pole 's fierce effort over the crossbar .

Real did rally late on with Ronaldo and Raphael Varane both going close , but Jose Mourinho 's men must now hope for an incredible turnaround next Tuesday .

Only once has a team emerged victorious after conceding a three goal deficit in a Champions League knockout stage .

On that occasion , Deportivo La Coruna came back from a 4-1 defeat at AC Milan to win 5-4 on aggregate courtesy of a 4-0 home win .

`` I think Dortmund were the best team by far , '' Real boss Mourinho told Sky Sports .

`` They won every individual battle on the pitch , they were stronger physically and mentally so I think they deserve it . How did it go from 1-1 to 4-1 ? I do n't know .

`` Everything happened in a short space of time . We lost easy possession and we could n't cope with their counter attack and their transition .

`` We know everything about Robert Lewandowski , every detail possible and we lost him in three goals . It 's very disappointing .

`` When we lose and we do n't deserve to lose , with me , it 's a drama , when I do deserve to lose I accept it . Of course the boy deserves credit for what he did but we gave him every support for man of the match . ''

A 3-0 win would take Real through to the final and keep alive its hopes of winning `` La Decima '' -- the club 's tenth trophy in the competition .

But the task looks nearly impossible following its abject showing in Dortmund .

`` It will be very difficult in the return leg at home but we must remain confident and try to react , '' Real captain Sergio Ramos told reporters .

`` When the draw for the semifinals was made a lot of people thought this was going to be easy for us , but this is a German team we are talking about . They are a great side . ''

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Borussia Dortmund crush Real Madrid 4-1 in first leg of Champions League semifinal

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Robert Lewandowski scored all four goals for German side

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Cristiano Ronaldo had made it 1-1 three minutes before halftime

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Real host second leg at the Bernabeu next Tuesday